Library's 'Hatch' space appeals to visitors' creativity

Sep. 9, 2013

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Area residents can hatch some great projects in the new Maker Space at Kirkendall Public Library — the first of its kind in central Iowa.

A Maker Space is an area containing specialized equipment for creating projects. Library Director Sarah Willeford said that the concept is fairly new — there’s only one other library in the state with a Maker Space.

“It’s usually found at community centers or at places where you have to join and pay a fee to use the equipment,” Willeford said.

“But we have so many groups getting together here at our library — writing groups, knitters, people who are making things — that we wanted to give them a physical space along with the equipment necessary to continue creating,” she said.

The Kirkendall Public Library will unveil its new space Sept. 16, with a ribbon cutting at 4:30 p.m. followed by an open house from 5 to 8 p.m. The space is officially called Hatch and will include a 3-D printer, video and audio editing equipment, an image scanner, a traditional sewing machine and a serger, plus tools for digitizing VHS, vinyl and audio cassettes. The equipment will be ready for the public to use Sept. 23.

“The name Hatch comes from ‘hatching an egg,’ because we’ll be hatching creativity,” Willeford said. “We’ve seen an increase in people using new technology, like e-readers, so we wanted to give them the opportunity to use new technology that they might not have at home, like a 3-D printer.”

The Hatch space is approximately 450 square feet and previously was used as a conference room and Willeford’s office.

“We converted the space and the equipment funding came from the library foundation and the Friends of the Library, as well as from the library’s budget. We do hope to add more equipment as we go and get a feel for what people would like to see there. We also hope to bring in Hatch mentors who are community members willing to share their expertise with others,” she said.

Cami Brazelton, a member of the library board, said the board is thrilled to offer a Maker Space for the community.

“One of the biggest things for me is that this is a really low-cost or no-cost way for people to try out these kinds of technology, as opposed to having to buy a 3-D printer or rent audio equipment,”. This is another opportunity for the community to use the library in new ways,” Brazelton said.

“We’ve seen Maker Spaces crop up across the country and this is another way people can utilize our library. We offer so many opportunities, from children’s Lego groups to adult ‘Downton Abbey’ viewing groups. We see thousands of people taking advantage of these opportunities and we know that Hatch will get a lot of use.”